3 But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord. – Jonah 1:3
I once saw a young man raise his hand in class and ask the teacher, “may I be excused from this assignment?” The entire class erupted in laughter. No one wanted to create those picture autobiographies! As funny as the joke was, there is a kernel of truth to the question. We naturally do not want to complete assignments that are difficult. The assignments we look to avoid as a child usually revolves around school or house chores. Then comes the responsibility of college, bills, and work. Next thing we know, we are sleepily changing a diaper at 2:00 am. Life is full of assignments that are difficult. Sometimes we wish we could ask God, “May I be excused from this assignment?”
This is what Jonah felt when God told him to go to Nineveh. Notice the verbiage “told.” God often does not ask us to complete an assignment. Rather, he tells us to. But Jonah did not like the command. In fact, he probably hated it. Nineveh was the capital of the Assyrian Empire and was a large and prominent city in its day. It was not a city of Israel at all; God called Jonah to go to a pagan, Gentile city and call them to repentance. Jonah was scared for his life. Any man of God would be. Pagans did not just disagree with Israel, they hated Israel. Jonah may also have not wanted the Assyrians to receive God’s grace. One commentary likened his experience to Jewish man in NYC during WWII being told to go to Germany. In either case, going to Nineveh may have meant certain hardship in the mind of Jonah.
The distant city of Tarshish was thought to be towards the end of the earth, and is always associated with ships in the Bible. Jonah wanted to go as far as he could to escape God’s presence, but this was a futile attempt. Would you spend thousands of dollars running away from God to go to San Francisco and hop on a boat to Hong Kong? This is what Jonah did.
It’s amazing the links to which Jonah went to avoid God’s command. He feared for his physical safety. Maybe he didn’t want the city of Nineveh to be saved. This leads to reflection in our own lives. Do we choose our personal safety over God’s command? Do we really want “that” person to know the love of Jesus Christ? We will see how the story of Jonah plays out, but in the meantime examine your heart. Ask yourself these difficult questions. Let the spirit lead your conviction. Above all remember even if your answers are not what they should be, Christ is enough for you.